Package



June 21, 1949.

H. RUMSEY, JR

PACKAGE Filed ed. i, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR HERBERT RUMSEY JR.

ATFORNEYS BY 1 g j June 21, 1949. UM JR 2,474,120

PACKAGE Filed Oct. 1, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 24 INVENTOR.

.. a .l HERBERT RUMSEY JR.

f 12 17 w dim I ATTORNEYS Patented June 21, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE PACKAGE Herbert Rumsey, In, RochesteiaN'. Y. Application October1, 194-6; seriatno. 700,398

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a functionally and structurally improvedpackage, and also teaches methods of manufacturing the same.

It is an object of the invention to provide a novel container ofrelatively inexpensive construction which can be so made as to protectthe ,contents thereof from moisture and air and which may in factmaintain the contents under conditions of partial vacuum.

A further object is the provision or a package of this type which isflexible in nature and can be relatively tightly compacted when emptythereby overcoming the problem of bull; and space encountered inshipping and storing rigid containers such as jars and the like.

A still further object is that of furnishing a package which can bereadily filled with material and closed and sealed by the packer andwhich can be repeatedly opened and closed in a convenient manner by theuser.

An additional object is that of teaching novel methods of manufacturingcontainers constructed to embody the improvements hereintraversed;

Among other objects is the provision of a package of the above characterwhich presents an attractive and modern appearance and which can bereadily and economically manufactured by quantity production methodsused as a commer'- cial package. 7

With these and other objects in'mind, reference is had to the attacheddrawings illustrating practical embodiments of the invention, and inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a package embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is alongitudinal sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the up er portion of the package showingit in partially open position;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of a mandrel and ring which may beused in making my package;

Fig. 5 illustrates a step in one method of making the package and showsthe mandrel and ring assembly having flexible sheet material "woundaround it;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the completed envelope;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the upper end of the package after ithas been filled showing the manner in which the air may be evacuatedtherefrom; 4

Fig. 8 is an elevational. View of the lower end of an alternative formof package; and

Fig; 9 is a sectional view in the directi'on of the arrows on the line8-9 oi Fig. 8.-

My improved package comprises a flexible envelope presenting aniinperforate end and side walls; The opposite end isreleasably closed bytwisting the envelope around. its longitudinal axis adjacent the openingso as to provide a pair of diaphragms H and [2 connected by anintermediate twisted portion 13. The envelope may be made of any type offlexible sheet material. I prefer, however, to employ a material such asPliofilni' or vinyl resin which is substantially impervious to air ahdmoisture and which is thermopl'astio so that it can be heat sealed.

Referring now to the first form of my invention it will be seen that theenvelope H! in its unfilled condition is-s'h'oWn in Fig. 6 and in itsfilled condition is shown in Figs. 1, 2 and'tlu The envelope ispreferably made of a single sheet or the flexible material of thegeneral type as ref'e-ried to above. This is folded upon. itself toprovide the envelope, is heat sealed along its longitudinal edge asshown at [4 and also heat sealed at one end as shown at l5; Theoppositeend of the; unfilled envelope is open and unsealed as shown i'n- Fig. 6.Extending around the opening in the first form of my invention is arigid ring 15- which may be made of cardboard, fibre, or the like and isadhesively secured in position around the inside of the open end. In usethe material to be packaged is placed in the envelope so- "as topartially fill the same, leaving a sufficie'nt portion of the envelopeadjacent the openmg unfilled so that it may be twisted in the mannerpreviously indicated. As will be understood during such filling the ringIE will maintain the mouth of the envelope in distended condition.Therefore, the entry of material through this month will be facilitated;

\Vhn the envelope has been thus filled a rigid disk l"-l may be insertedover the contents in the manner shown. Thereafter the air inside theenvelo e may be evacuated or partially evacuated in any suitable manneras for instance shown inF'ig. 7- by placing a hood 18 connected by atube l3: to a vacuum pump over the open end or the envelope: Tofacilitate the evacuation of the air the disk Il may have one or moreperforesees (not shown) formed therein. The evacuation of the air causesthe unfilled neck portion: the envelope to collapse or partiallycollapse in the manner shown in Fig. 7-. While the envelope is stillapplied to the vacuum hood the neck portion thereof is twistedaroundit's lbn'gitudin'al ax-is in the manner shown in Fig. 3

until the envelope is tightly closed thus providing a pair of diaphragmsH and I2 connected by an intermediate twist portion 13. The closureserves as an effective seal to prevent leakage of air or moisture atthis point. The package may be held in closed position by a pair ofadhesive tabs formed of cellulose tape or the like which extend betweenthe body portion of the container and the ring portion surrounding theouter diaphragm.

The envelope I!) may be made in any desired manner. One convenientmethod is illustrated in Figs. 4.- and 5 wherein I show a mandrel 2|having a cylindrical body portion, a handle 22 at one end and projectingtabs or prongs 23 at the opposite end. The prongs or tabs 23 are spacedinwardly from the outer diameter of the mandrel and are adapted tofrictionally engage the ring 86 whose external diameter conforms withthe external diameter of the mandrel. suitable adhesive is preferablyapplied to the outer surface of the ring l6 which in turn is placed inposition on the prongs 23. A sheet of flexible material of substantiallythe same length as the mandrel and of slightly larger circumference isthen wound around the ring and mandrel assembly in the manner shown inFig. 5. The marginally overlapping edges are then heat sealed as shownat M. The winding of the sheet material about the mandrel can beconveniently accomplished by simply rolling the mandrel and ringassembly over the sheet material. The adhesive on the ring causes thesheet material to adhere thereto and to wind around the mandrel. Whenthe material has thus been wound around the mandrel and heat sealedaround its longitudinal edges, the ring l5 and sheet material arewithdrawafromthe mandrel and the end opposite the ring it is heat sealedas shown at l5, producing the envelope illustrated in Fig. 6. Theenvelope can then be filled and used in the manner previously described.

In certain instances I have found that it is not necessary or desirableto use the ring H5 in the finished package. In those instances the ringit used in connection with the mandrel in making the envelope may bemade of metal and may be coated with a tacky substance such as Pliowax.When the envelope has been completed and filled, the ring it can then bewithdrawn therefrom. This form of package is illustrated in Figs. 8 and9 and it will be seen that the outer marginal edges 24 of diaphragm Hare folded backwardly over the outer surface of the body of the packageand held in position by means of the adhesive tabs 20.

The alternative form of package shown in Figs. 8 and 9 can be filled andused in the manner similar to the first type of package. I havepreviousl described the manner in which the air inside the envelope maybe evacuated or partially evacuated. In addition to or instead ofevacuating the air an inert gas such as carbon dioxide may be introducedinto the envelope through the hood arrangement shown in Fig. 7. Mypackage may be used for packaging many different types of material suchas food products and is particularly suitable for use with frozen foodproducts. When used with frozen food products it is desirable toevacuate the air from the envelope and at times also to introduce carbondioxide into the envelope. This serves to protect the contents fromdiscoloration or oxidation or bacterial action. It will thus be seenthat my package is relatively inexpensive and can be made also serves toprotect the contents from deteriora- The broad ring tion in quality orappearance. and diaphragm portion serves as a convenient base forsupporting the package as shown in.

Figs. 1 and 2. When it is desired to use a portion of the contents thepackage is inverted so that the diaphragm portion faces upwardly theadhesive strips 20 are partially removed and the outer diaphragm I I isrotated to untwist the portion I 3 and thereby open the package. Whenthe desired quantit of contents has been removed the package can bereadily closed and sealed by rotating the ring [6 relative to the bodyof the package thereby forming the diaphragms H and l 2 and theintermediate twisted portion 13. Adhesive strips 20 may again bereplaced and the package is once again sealed.

Thus, among others, the several objects of the invention as specificallyaforenoted, are achieved. Obviously, numerous changes in constructionand rearrangement of the parts may be resorted to and the steps of themethod may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention,as defined by the claims.

I claim:

l. A container comprising a tubular envelope closed at one end andhaving an opening at its other end and provided with imperforate wallsmade of flexible sheet material, contents material disposed in theclosed end and partially filling the envelope, a relatively broad flatdisk disposed transversely of the envelope at the end of the contentsmaterial, said envelope being twisted around its longitudinal axisbetween the open end and said disk so as to provide a pair of diaphragmswith a twisted portion therebetween, the inner diaphragm being stretchedrelatively tautly over said disk and said disk serving to keep thecontents from contact with said inner diaphragm and the outer diaphragmbeing disposed in close proximity to the inner diaphragm, and means forretaining said outer diaphragm against rotation with respect to theremainder of the envelope.

2. A container as set forth in claim 1 in which a relatively stiffcollar is provided around the periphery of the outer diaphragm at theopen end of the envelope said collar being at least as wide as theremainder of the container and serving as a base on which the containermay rest.

3. A container as set forth in claim 1 in which the air has beensubstantially evacuated from the envelope.

HERBERT RUMSEY, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following referenlces are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,922,171 McMahon Aug. 15, 19332,156,466 Vogt May 2, 1939 2,114,625 Bergstein Apr. 19, 1938 2,135,132Boehmer Nov. 1, 1938 2,352,503 Walton June 27, 1944 2,368,624 WaltonFeb. 6, 1945

